Police chief: Officer who shot Missouri teen did not know he was a robbery suspect at the time

FERGUSON, Mo. – The police chief in the St. Louis suburb where an unarmed black teenager was fatally shot by police says the officer didn’t know the teen was a robbery suspect at the time of the shooting.

Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson earlier Friday released documents alleging 18-year-old Michael Brown had been suspected of stealing a $48.99 box of cigars from a convenience store in a “strong-arm” robbery shortly before he was killed.

During an afternoon news conference Jackson said the robbery “was not related to the initial contact” between the officer and Brown on Saturday.

He declined to elaborate as to why the officer stopped Brown and his friend, citing the ongoing investigation into the shooting.